Giving yourself a good manicure isn’t just a matter of trimming and filing your nails; For starters, the rest of your hands need love too. With the right tools and gentle care, you can achieve salon-like results at home (which can also mean saving you some money). Here’s what the experts recommend for nails that look healthy and polished, even when they’re not painted.
1. Create a clean base
First, wipe off any old nail polish. Los Angeles-based nail artist Betina Goldstein suggests Karma Organics’ oil-based removers; Acetone, the main ingredient in many other products, can dry out nails. And if you notice your skin developing spots while removing particularly dark colors, New York-based nail artist Megumi Yamamoto recommends first applying cuticle oil to the skin around the nail.
Then clean your hands with soap and water or hand sanitizer. Yamamoto’s favorite cleaning solution is Sea breeze, which is “not too drying and smells very fresh,” she says. Even though soaking your fingers in water is a common step in many salons, Yamamoto and Goldstein recommend skipping it, especially since it can lengthen the nail polish’s drying time and cause streaks.
Then gently push back your cuticles. This makes bare nails look longer and more even, and “if you apply nail polish to your cuticle, it will look bumpy and flake more easily,” says Goldstein.
-
Yamamoto starts by softening the cuticles with a little Sea Breeze. As an alternative, she suggests using Blue Cross Cuticle remover to the base of your fingernails and let it sit for a minute.
-
Then she uses one orange stick, covered with a small piece of cotton wool, to push back the cuticle. If you used a remover, wipe off any residue.
-
Use a cuticle clipper to remove any hangnails, but omit cutting the actual cuticles – an optional, occasional step – to the professionals.
2. Trimming and shaping
If you’re removing a lot of length, start with a pair of clippers, like those from Seki Edge Stainless steel option. Trim the sides of the nail tip and then trim the center to make it even.
If you’re just refining your shape, Goldstein says that simply filing should do the trick. Glass files are the least likely to leave your nails with ragged edges and are easy to clean, she says. If you prefer a nail file, choose one that you can disinfect; Goldstein recommends files from CND And ORLYand both she and Yamamoto love Flowery’s assortment of shelves. Whichever type you use, Goldstein says a grit or coarseness level of 180 to 240 is best for natural nails.
To shape the nails, Yamamoto recommends filing at a 45-degree angle. Move in smooth, single motions toward your thumb. Finish each nail with one stroke in the opposite direction. “Don’t saw your natural nail back and forth,” warns London-based manicurist Lauren Michelle Pires, 34, explaining that this leads to peeling and flaking. To square your nails, gently file the top and then shape the sides by gently filing upwards. For a more rounded nail, follow the curve of your fingertips.
3. Improved
Lightly polishing the surface of your nails can give them a natural shine. It can also help the polish adhere better, if you choose to add it. Yamamoto recommends three-way buffers, which have three different coarseness levels: Manucurist offers a good option. Start with the coarsest side to remove particularly rough spots; continue with the medium side to smooth the entire surface; and then add shine with the softest side. Move the buffer horizontally across the nail at each level to smooth out vertical ridges, Yamamoto advises. Then use the edge of the buffer, she says, to buff the creases where the sides of your nails meet your skin.
4. Make your hands smooth and soft
Start by exfoliating to remove any dead skin cells. “I like to do this twice a week,” says Goldstein, who swears by the soothing benefits of Osea’s Malibu salts of the earth scrub. Then massage the hands with a moisturizer, paying special attention to the cuticle area. Goldstein uses a pea-sized amount of rich hand cream mixed with two drops of vitamin E oil; for the former, Yamamoto recommends Cetaphil’s Moisturizing cream and Cicabiafine Intensive restorative hand cream. If you plan to apply nail polish, wipe away excess moisture from the nails with a small amount of rubbing alcohol on a cotton pad, says Pires.
5. Apply polish if necessary
If you prefer bare nails, Yamamoto suggests adding some subtle shine with a nourishing serum or oil, such as that from Japanese brand Uka. Nail Oil Basic. For a more colorful manicure:
-
Apply a base coat first if you paint your nails in a light or transparent color. Yamamoto’s favorites include formulas from Uka And If so.
-
Once you’re ready for your main coat, prevent drips by wiping one side of the brush in the neck of the bottle after each dip; you have better control over where the polish goes.
-
Paint the nails in three movements: starting just above the cuticle, brush once in the center, once on the right side and once on the left side. “Any more than this,” says Pires, “and the paint can become bumpy or too thick to dry.” Applying one thin coat to all your nails this way will give you plenty of drying time between coats. For most colors, apply two layers.
-
Finally, add a clear top coat — two full coats of it, according to Goldstein, followed by an extra bit along the tip of each nail, an area vulnerable to chipping. See Vit is a good, protective option, and Yamamoto loves Essie’s Gel Couture long coat.
-
Whichever hand you’re painting, Goldstein recommends moving your dominant hand to where you need it, while keeping the other straight and above all still.
6. Maintain your manicure
Regularly moisturizing and applying cuticle oil as part of your nighttime routine will keep your hands healthy and soft. “If your manicure has lost its shine after a few days, that’s possible [add] a new top layer,” says Pires. “And when you wash dishes or clean, always wear gloves.”
